After letting go of his handshake, Keith pointed to Deng Shiyang, who was sitting next to him, and introduced, "JD is in charge of this job, and I’m his assistant."

Du Preez was slightly taken aback but quickly put on a smile, extending his hand in greeting, "Pleasure working with you."

"Thank you," Deng Shiyang smiled as he shook his hand and said, "Thank you for your help in advance."

Du Preez smiled and raised his beer glass, "To this job."

The other two also picked up their glasses, raised them, and took a sip.

After putting down his glass, Keith said seriously, "Alright, let’s start by talking about what we need. First, we need to establish a temporary base for communication, which we’ve already found."

Du Preez nodded.

"Each of us needs a mobile phone for communication. Also, JD’s laptop requires wireless internet access."

"That’s easy," Du Preez replied. "South Africa hasn’t implemented real-name registration for mobile phones yet, so you can easily buy prepaid phones at any 'PEP.' As for wireless internet, you just need an ID copy and proof of income to apply for an account with iBurst."

"These matters are up to you," Keith said with satisfaction. "We also need to apply for two credit cards."

Du Preez thought for a moment and replied, "Financial management in South Africa is very strict. To apply for a credit card, you first need to open a checking account, but the process of opening an account is complicated." He paused and added, "Moreover, South African banks are very strict about foreign currency management. Personal foreign currency accounts are not allowed, and all transfers must be declared, with any incoming currency automatically converted to rand."

Keith frowned and asked, "What about transferring funds abroad?"

"For outbound transfers, there’s a limit of 200,000 rand per transaction, and the origin and purpose must be declared."

Keith clicked his tongue and said, "Check what documents are required to open a personal account."

"I'll make a call." Du Preez didn’t hesitate, immediately standing up and walking to the restaurant's telephone booth.

Watching him close the glass door, Keith turned to Deng Shiyang and said, "With such strict regulations, it seems we can't transfer funds through South African banks."

"But I’m more concerned about the credit card," Deng Shiyang replied. "Using cash as a foreigner might raise suspicion. If there’s no other way, we could use local residence information to open an account. Those things shouldn’t be hard to get on the black market."

"It’s doable, but it will add unnecessary risk..." Keith stopped mid-sentence, tapping Deng Shiyang’s foot under the table with his shoe.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

At that moment, Du Preez came back holding a small piece of paper.

The South African man sat down in front of the table and said, "I’ve already asked about the account-opening requirements for foreigners." He cleared his throat, picked up the paper, and started reading, "To open an account at a bank, you must be there in person, with your original passport and proof of residence."

"What’s proof of residence?"

"There are two types in South Africa: employment certification from a company, or a letter of verification from the electricity and water utility."

"Forget the first one, tell me more about the second."

"Normally, applicants take their passport and a utility bill to the utility office to get a verification letter. If it’s a rented property, the landlord needs to provide a letter, which is then taken to the utility office for processing."

Keith listened quietly before asking, "Is it possible for you to get a document from the landlord?"

"I'll have it for you by tomorrow morning," Du Preez said, looking at both of them, then extended his hand, "but I need your passports."

"No problem," Keith agreed, handing over his passport. Deng Shiyang hesitated for a moment before also taking his passport out of his pocket and handing it over.

After Du Preez put away the two passports, Keith summoned a waiter to settle the bill, and they left the clubhouse.

Deng Shiyang asked the South African to drive to a nearby bank, where he exchanged $500 in traveler’s checks, then handed Du Preez 3,000 rand in cash.

They parted at the bank entrance. Du Preez hailed a taxi on his mobile phone to take Deng Shiyang and Keith back to the villa, while he drove the Land Cruiser into the city.

Back at the villa, the two of them began to clean up the house. Deng Shiyang chose a room on the second floor with a window facing the Indian Ocean, complete with an en-suite bathroom. He took a quick hot shower and then lay down to deal with his jet lag.

He slept until late at night. Possibly due to having too many spicy dishes at lunch, he woke up feeling parched and went down to the kitchen for some water.

At that moment, Du Preez and Keith were sitting at the bar in front of the kitchen counter, each with a wine glass in front of them. On the table, there was also a bucket with a bottle of chilled white wine and a large white ceramic bowl filled with dried meat strips.

Seeing Deng Shiyang walk into the kitchen, Keith pointed at the bottle in the bucket, but the former waved his hand. He opened the refrigerator but found no bottled water, so he took out a bottle of Appletiser apple juice, poured himself a glass, and sat down beside the bar.

There was no denying Du Preez’s efficiency. He had managed to get everything done in just one afternoon. He bought a wireless modem and three Vodacom prepaid phones, along with a large amount of food and drinks, and two big plastic bags full of toiletries like toilet paper and shampoo.

Most importantly, he obtained the landlord's signed verification document, listing both of their names and passport numbers, confirming that they were residing there.

Deng Shiyang was satisfied as he put away the documents and passports, then took a brown piece of jerky from the bowl and started eating it with the juice...

They kept eating and drinking like this until dawn. At nine in the morning, Du Preez took them to a nearby chain restaurant, where they had a traditional breakfast of sour yogurt and corn porridge before driving to the utility office.

Getting the proof of residence didn't take long. The young Black man in charge compared the passport photos, then quickly filled in the address, names, and passport numbers on the form before taking it to the office to get a manager’s signature and stamp.

With all the documents prepared, opening the account went smoothly, and it was completed before noon. Deng Shiyang and Keith went to Standard Bank on Chamberlain Road in the Jacobs area and opened personal accounts, also applying for credit cards.

On their way back, Du Preez made a detour to the Brighton Beach post office, where Keith rented a PO box under the name Charles Shannon.

That night, Deng Shiyang sent Harrowby an email with both of their bank account numbers, mobile phone numbers, and the postal address and PO box number.